ALBUM: Creeper – Eternity, In Your Arms

Creeper are a band who have been floating around the periphery of mainstream music for a year or so now. The sextet punk rockers from Southampton may have only been a band for three years, but they’ve gained themselves a rather large and dedicated following. With mainstream BBC Radio 1 airplay and being background music for the whole Busted arena tour last year, it’s a huge accomplishment for a band with only three EPs to their name.

Now is the time for Creeper to emphasise their domination and that they’re here to stay. What better way to do that by releasing one of the most anticipated debut albums of 2017: ‘Eternity, In Your Arms’.

Setting us off, ‘Black Rain’ starts with a harrowing piano and spoken word introduction before tearing into a full blown goth punk rampage soaked in Davey Havok-esque vocals. The album pretty much follows suit from here, and is packed with theatrical and spook tinged punk.

Lead singer Will Gould has a lyrical genius that resonates with every listener’s inner angst. The lyrics are personal and relatable, none more so than in ‘Misery’; the first melodic based track on the album holds lyrics soaked in self loathing and despair. The wrenching chorus refrains “If you could see the wreck I am these days / You’d have more reasons to stay away” stands out, and is sure to generate a response at live shows.

Curtain closer ‘I Choose To Live’ genuinely wouldn’t be too out of place on a Queen album, such is the theatrics and dramatics of the track. With an album full of dark, this offers hope and positivity (as well as an epic sing along). A perfect ending for a near enough perfect album.

What Creeper have done is bring a genre that was close to extinction back to the brink of mainstream domination. It’s scarce to hear an album with so much passion and so much lyrical sincerity; it really feels like the start of something special. Reminiscent of Alkaline Trio‘s ‘The Crimson’ and My Chemical Romance‘s ‘I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love’, the band have found a formula that makes a fanbase feel like a family, and that’s a rarity these days.

‘Eternity, In Your Arms’ will be sure to make 99% of top 10 rock/punk/alt et al album lists this year, and it won’t be long before the rest of the musical world takes notice. Creeper have gained so much momentum in only three years, and there’s no sign shred of halting in sight.